When a diner writes, in all caps, “MARVELOUS!!!” when commenting on a restaurant experience, you can feel pretty good about what you might find there.

Customers continue to rave about Bistro V. The narrow place sits adjacent to Vestavia Hills City Hall and along the same sidewalk with Snapper Grabbers Seafood Market, a resource for many of the items served at the restaurant.

Downey created the dish ($16; $18 with chicken; $20 with shrimp) that has been served since the restaurant opened in June 2010.

“It is one of those dishes that you can prepare in 10 to 15 minutes, and everybody loves it,” he noted,

A fish of the day (typically $25 to $27) is the bistro’s main draw, said Downey, who grew up in Bayou Le Batre, a south Alabama town known for its fishing boats and shrimp boats. It was there, he explained, that he learned about fish and the value of its freshness.

“Fish is what people come here for,” noted Downey, who owns the restaurant with Emily Tuttle Shell, creator of all the restaurant’s made-in-house desserts.

The restaurant’s stone-ground grits and collard greens are the most popular side choices, Downey reported, confessing that he favors the collards which are prepared fresh and available almost daily. (On days when they are not served you’ll likely find turnip greens on the menu.)

Chocolate bread pudding and crème brulee are the most popular desserts served at the eatery where some diners visit several times weekly.

“This is their place,” the chef observed, adding that in June he plans a celebration of the restaurant’s third anniversary. Asked who will be invited, Downey is quick to reply, “The more the merrier; this is a neighborhood restaurant.”